Composition and use with controlled drop applicators

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to the blending of key nutritional and hormonal components for successful application through a controlled drop applicator to satisfy plant requirements for growth. More specifically this invention provides a micronutrient composition for enhancing plant growth made of a mixture of gibberellic acid dissolved in triethanolamine. The gibberellic acids are: Gibberellic acid 4, Gibberellic acid 7, Gibberellic acid 9, Gibberellic acid 12. The gibberellic acids are mixed with kinetin dissolved in an alcohol; tryptophan dissolved in a humic acid solution; and a sufficient amount of a chelating agent.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Ser. No. 61/509,165 filedJul. 19, 2011 under 35 U.S.C. §119(e), hereby specifically incorporatedby reference.

STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention is directed to liquid foliar hormonal products that aredesigned for use in low water volume sprayers. Foliar feeding of plantspresents many technical challenges. Plants put up many barriers to theretention, entry, and transport of active agents such growth inhibitorsand stimulators. In addition, environmental conditions and plant factors(age, architecture, leaf morphology and leaf arrangement) may decreasethe activity of a plant modulator. Adjuvants are commonly used toimprove a plant modulator performance.

The use of liquid fertilizers and hormonal blends, foliarly applied, onprofessionally managed turf is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,188,655. The'655 patent addresses the proper blends of gibberellic acids (GA),auxins (AUX) and cytokinins (CYT) to optimize plant growth. Properblending of the hormonal components must be combined with properapplication to the turf to ensure optimum growth and health. Therefore,all foliar products utilizing the stated hormonal blend must be used intraditional commercial sprayers that can maintain a recommended sprayvolume of 25-40 gallons per acre (GPA). A standard commercial spray righas a 100 to 150 gallon tank mounted to the frame. This permits numerousnutritional and hormonal products to be added to the tank withoutincident because of the high degree of dilution.

But, based on the evidence of increasing environmental regulations,particularly water usage and runoff, manufacturers of spray rigs areredesigning their equipment to use ultra-low volumes of water. In someinstances the equipment discharges water volumes in the 2-4 gibberellicacid range while tank sizes range from 8 to 14 gallons. This technologyis known as the “Controlled Drop Applicator” (CDA). U.S. Pat. No.4,619,401, provides an example of the newly designed spray nozzles thatare required to provide these ultra-low water volumes. The design ofthese nozzles makes it imperative that the liquid formulations passingthrough this orifice do not contain rigid particulates or othercomponents that will cause clogging. Because of the low-volume tanks andlow spray rates, only one or two nutritional and hormonal products canbe added at one time. However, as many as twenty different nutrients andhormones are needed for proper plant growth, thus multiple sprayapplications must be made to adequately cover the agronomic needs of theplant. This is not practical because of the demands of a golf course orsports stadium.

The manufacturers of liquid foliar fertilizers and hormonal products arenow challenged to redesign their products to comply with the trendtoward these ultra-low spray volumes. This is not a straight-forwardexercise, as the chemical limitations do not allow concentrating theseproducts by 10-fold. Furthermore, higher concentrations of productsincrease the likelihood of particulate formation and increased chancefor clogging of the nozzles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the blending of key nutritional andhormonal components for successful application through a controlled dropapplicator to satisfy plant requirements for growth. More specificallythis invention provides a micronutrient composition for enhancing plantgrowth made of a mixture of gibberellic acid dissolved intriethanolamine. The gibberellic acids are: gibberellic acid 4,gibberellic acid 7, gibberellic acid 9, gibberellic acid 12. Thegibberellic acids are mixed with kinetin dissolved in an alcohol;tryptophan dissolved in a humic acid solution; and a sufficient amountof a chelating agent.

This invention provides a micronutrient product made by the processinvolving solubilizing gibberellic acid in triethanolamine wherein theweight percentage of triethanolamine ranges from between 94-89% and thegibberellic acid ranges from between 6-11%; solubilizing kinetin inisopropyl alcohol wherein the weight percentages of said isopropylalcohol ranges from between 85-95% and kinetin ranges from between50-15%; and solubilizing tryptophan in a humic acid solution.

This invention also provides a method to provide plant nutritionalproduct via controlled drop applicator. This method includes the stepsof providing the composition to turf grass wherein the amount ofgibberellic acid ranges from between 1-10 grams per acre; the amount ofkinetin ranges from between 1-10 grams per acre; and the amount oftryptophan ranges from between 3 to 5 grams per acre.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention may be understood more readily by reference to thefollowing detailed description of the invention. It is to be understoodthat this invention is not limited to the specific devices, methods,conditions or parameters described herein, and that the terminology usedherein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments by way ofexample only and is not intended to be limiting of the claimedinvention. Also, as used in the specification including the appendedclaims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include the plural, andreference to a particular numerical value includes at least thatparticular value, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Rangesmay be expressed herein as from “about” or “approximately” oneparticular value and/or to “about” or “approximately” another particularvalue. When such a range is expressed, another embodiment includes fromthe one particular value and/or to the other particular value.Similarly, when values are expressed as approximations, by use of theantecedent “about,” it will be understood that the particular valueforms another embodiment.

The present invention relates to the blending of nutritional andhormonal components for successful application through a controlled dropapplicator to satisfy plant requirements for growth. Raw materials usedfor the source of individual hormones and nutrients must be moreconcentrated as are the final products themselves. Further, toaccomplish these requirements the micronutrients have been:

1) solubilized with atypical solvents,

2) chelated in novel ways, and

3) correct ratios of hormones.

Solubilization. Micronutrient compounds containing iron, manganese,zinc, copper, and molybdenum are very soluble in water and do notrequire new or different means of dissolution. However, these compoundsrequire special chelating technology to remain in solution.

The hormone balance containing gibberellins, auxins and cytokininsrequires novel ways to enhance solubility. There are approximately 115different gibberellic acids throughout the plant kingdom, but only a fewof these promote proper growth in turf-grass. Specifically, GA4, GA7,GA9 and GA12 are crucial to cell division and controlled growth.However, these gibberellic acids have different solubilities in waterand are much more difficult to keep in solution at the concentrationsneeded for controlled drop applicator products. The total of all fourgibberellic acids listed above must be between 1 and 10 grams per acreof product sprayed.

This invention includes not only the proper blend of these gibberellicacids but also the solvent that can dissolve all four. Of the 1-10 gramtotal dosage per acre the hormonal blend of gibberellic acid contains:

GA4 40-50%

GA7 20-30%

GA9 10-20%

GA12 5-10%

This combination of gibberellic acids can only be sufficientlysolubilized by a dilute solution of triethanolamine (TEA). The properratio of triethanolamine to gibberellic acid for complete solubility is:

triethanolamine (85% purity) 94-89%

gibberellic acid 6-11%

The historical source of cytokinins and auxins has been seaweed extract.However, the key components from the seaweed source are miniscule whencompared to the amino acid and sugar content. To achieve the desiredlevels of these hormones, this invention incorporates the use of asingular cytokinin source and a singular auxin source.

Kinetin, the primary component of cytokinins, must be present in theproduct to provide between 1 and 10 grams per acre of the productsprayed. Proper solubility of the kinetin can best be achieved bydissolving in a dilute solution of isopropyl alcohol (IPA). The properweight percentages for the kinetin and isopropyl alcohol in the solutionare:

Isopropyl Alcohol (70% purity) 95-85%

Kinetin 5-15%

The source of auxin in this invention is tryptophan derived from casein.Tryptophan is an amino acid that serves as a ready precursor for theplant's conversion to either auxins—IAA or IBA. Tryptophan is difficultto get into solution. This invention utilizes a humic acid solution toachieve appropriate solubility. The equivalent auxin dosage to besprayed per acre is between 3 and 5 grams. A solution of tryptophan isachieved when water, powdered casein, and a 20% solution of humic acidare mixed within these weight percentages:

Water 66-50%

Humic acid 29-42%

Casein 5-8%

Chelation. The primary purpose of chelation is to prevent the prematurereaction of micronutrients in the spray tank. A chelating compound hasmultiple negative charges that bind with the positive charges of thenutrient. This chelated molecule is then absorbed foliarly into theplant and translocated to its metabolic site. If the chelating agent istoo strong then the plant can't utilize it properly; if it is too weakthen the chelating bonds could break in the spray tank making thenutrient hopelessly tied-up with other molecules. Ideally, the chelatingagent should be a naturally occurring compound that the plant can easilymetabolize and use in other plant functions—yet strong enough to protectthe nutrient from other scavenging ions.

Chelating agents have been used extensively for years but selection ofthe proper agent depends on the intended use. Within the confines ofthis invention, the chelating agent should be natural and able towithstand the high concentration of other components in the product.Experience has shown, and demonstrated in this invention, that thefollowing organic acids provide the most benefits when used to chelatethese micronutrients

Iron—gluconic and fumaric acids

Manganese—glycolic and aconitic acids

Zinc—succinic and pyruvic acids

Copper—tartaric acid

The addition rates for these organic acids must match the number ofcharges (negative to positive) and stoichiometry to properly chelate thenutrient. Prior art has utilized sugars or amino acids that have proventoo weak or synthetically produced acids, such as EDTA, which are toostrong. For example, iron gluconate, requires two molecules of gluconicacid to properly chelate one iron atom.

Hormonal Ratio

The hormonal ratio in product design depends on desired result in theplant. For instance, the desire to enhance root development requires adifferent hormonal balance than is required for topical growth and plantdensity. Therefore, this invention utilizes the following guidelines forhormonal ratios when designing a product:

Hormone Root Growth Topical Growth gibberellic acid 1 9 tryptophan 4 5CYT kinetin 10 2The ratio of gibberellic acid:tryptophan:kinetin is 9:5:2, for topicalgrowth, while the ratio of gibberellic acid:tryptophan:kinetin is 1:4:10for root growth. Variation from these ratios can result in abnormalgrowth or even senescence.

These and other aspects, features and advantages of the invention willbe understood with reference to the detailed description herein, andwill be realized by means of the various elements and combinationsparticularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is to be understoodthat both the foregoing general description and the following detaileddescription of the invention are exemplary and explanatory of preferredembodiments of the invention, and are not restrictive of the invention,as claimed.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A micronutrient product made by the processcomprising: solubilizing gibberellic acid in a sufficient amount oftriethanolamine to form a solution of gibberellic acid andtriethanolamine wherein the weight percentage of triethanolamine rangesfrom between 94-89% and the gibberellic acid ranges from between 6-11%for the solution of gibberellic acid and triethanolamine; solubilizingkinetin in a sufficient amount of isopropyl alcohol to form a solutionof kinetin and isopropyl alcohol wherein the weight percentages of saidisopropyl alcohol ranges from between 85-95% and kinetin ranges frombetween 50-15% for the solution of kinetin and isopropyl alcohol;solubilizing tryptophan in a sufficient amount of a humic acid to form asolution of tryptophan and humic acid; and combining the solution ofgibberellic acid and triethanolamine, the solution of kinetin andisopropyl alcohol and the solution of tryptophan and humic acid to makesaid micronutrient product.
 2. The product of claim 1 wherein the humicacid is a solution and the humic acid solution is comprised of water,humic acid and casein and a volume percentage of the humic acid solutionranges from between 50-60% of water, 29-42% of humic acid and 5-8% ofcasein.
 3. The micronutrient product of claim 1 wherein the ratio ofgibberellic acid:tryptophan:kinetin is 9:5:2.
 4. The micronutrientproduct of claim 1 wherein the ratio of gibberellicacid:tryptophan:kinetin is 1:4:10.
 5. A method to provide amicronutrient product via a controlled drop applicator comprising thestep of: applying the micronutrient product of claim 1 with a controlleddrop applicator to turf grass wherein the amount of gibberellic acidranges from between 1-10 grams per acre; wherein the amount of kinetinranges from between 1-10 grams per acre; and wherein the amount oftryptophan ranges from between 3 to 5 grams per acre.